


can’t rest a minute (when you’re living life on the run)

by TheNameIsZ (curiouslygray)



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Accidental Outlaws, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Partners in Crime, Pining, Wild West, outlaw au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-15
Updated: 2019-05-15
Packaged: 2020-03-05 23:33:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18839035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/curiouslygray/pseuds/TheNameIsZ
Summary: Nobody expected anything to happen in the small town of Midvale. No one would have guessed that the little girl who showed up over a decade ago and the woman who moved in a few years after would later become the biggest accidental outlaws of their time.





	can’t rest a minute (when you’re living life on the run)

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by Dierks Bently's song "Life On The Run" but the final product probably doesn't reflect very much of that story. Regardless, I sat down and wrote this whole in one day. I had enough other ideas on how the story should move forward that I'll probably write a different version.
> 
> Enjoy the story.

Nobody expected anything exciting to happen in the small town of Midvale. One of most exciting things that had happened recently was over a decade ago when a house a half day’s ride outside of town had burned to the ground, killing nearly everyone inside. Everyone, except for the daughter.

Kara Zorel showed up in town, complete devastated as to what had happened, knocking on the door of the doctor’s house. Eliza Danvers treated her minor wounds and, after a bit of questioning, found out that the barely teenage girl’s extended family all live on the east coast. She pleaded with them to not send her to an orphanage, offering to work and earn her place in the house. Instead, a few days later, Eliza and her husband, Jeremiah, handed papers over to Kara saying that she was now officially a Danvers.

Shortly thereafter, Kara met her new older sister, Alex. Despite initially being cold and unaccepting, Alex came around once she realized Kara could help her with chores.

Within a year of Kara being adopted, she received a letter from a mostly unfamiliar name. A man by the name of Clark Kent had written to her, claiming to be her cousin. She was excited at the prospects of her family reaching out to her, but all the letter said was that his parents had died from illness and he was in no shape to raise a kid as he was started work as a police officer. He wished her luck, having heard about her adoption into the Danvers family, and told her that if she ever found herself out east to stop by.

She never responded to the letter, feeling burned that the only blood relative she had still had no interest in her.

A few months after the letter arrived, Jeremiah got sick. At first it was just a cough, but it got worse. Eventually he was bedridden, Alex and Kara taking care of the farm while Eliza did everything in her power to save her husband. In the end, it was futile.

Just over a year after losing her family and finding a new one, she’d already lost a father again.

Alex was inconsolable, shutting herself in her room. Eliza cleaned the house for days before opening back up to patients. Kara knew that, in Jeremiah’s absence and essentially in Alex’s as well, she had to make sure the farm was sustainable. Waking up before the sun rose and often not going to bed until late, Kara would go out and plant, water, and harvest, taking care of the various animals as well.

Alex got better, eventually. She started helping Kara on the farm again, only to turn around and start working under the sheriff in town. Eliza’s assistance in the farm was futile, as whenever she’d try to help Kara would direct her back around inside. Eventually the three settled into their lives again, forever changed by Jeremiah’s death but striving to come out better from the ordeal.

-

The next most recent exciting thing to happen in Midvale occurred seven years after Kara’s arrival. A woman arrived in town, having bought a house not too far from the Danvers farm, so Kara packed up a few packages of meat and some loaves of bread into a basket and walked down to the house.

The woman was two years younger than Kara, living on her own, had long dark hair and brilliant green eyes. She captured Kara’s attention the moment she opened the door, frying all the synapses in her brain. After a few seconds of wide eyed staring, Kara thrusted the basket forward, explaining that she was the farmer down the road and introduced herself. The woman took the basket stepping back and welcoming Kara into her house.

“I will say, typically people bring over pies or something of the sort, not meat and bread.” There was something about her voice that Kara loved, an accent she couldn’t place, and amused lilt that made her heart stutter.

“Well, pies and desserts are all good - I do love a good chocolate pecan pie myself - but meat and bread are more practical and are some staples to keep in your kitchen.”

The woman laughed, agreeing with Kara’s point before properly introducing herself.

“My name is Lena. Would you like a slice of pie?”

-

The two women became close as the years passed. Kara was amazed by how intelligent Lena was, having travelled out west at eighteen to study the various minerals and flora out in the area. She vaguely mentioned a bad relationship with her family, but Kara never pushed her on it. Instead, she invited Lena to family dinners and get togethers with Alex and their friends. Sometimes Kara would have to dragged Lena out of her house after having not seen her for days on end.

Neither would acknowledge the more than platonic relationship that had developed. They’d share flirty glances with each other, touches occasionally lingering longer than usual. Lena would never admit to the times she’s stared at Kara while she work, tilling the fields and hauling hay bales. She’s never admit the dreams she’d had of peeling off Kara’s sweaty clothes after a long day’s work, running her hands over tense muscles, relaxing them. In turn, Kara would never admit how she goes out of her way to find samples or bring food to Lena. If pressed, she’d blush, but deny flaunting her strength when Lena is around, lifting a hay bale onto her shoulder or single-handedly moving some of Lena’s furniture.

The two were stuck in a circle of enticing glances, but never betting their chances.

-

It was early afternoon, the sun high in the sky, and Kara took a break by bringing Lena a few vegetables and some flowers she’d never seen in the area before. Lena had accepted the flowers after a pause of consideration, her brain coming to a standstill at the sight of Kara standing on her doorstep with flowers for her. Eventually her brain restarted and Lena welcomed her in, taking the flowers from her hands. The two chatted as Kara placed the vegetables in Lena’s kitchen and Lena placed the flowers at her study table, eventually reconvening in the kitchen. Lena offered Kara a glass of water, (“You look absolutely parched, working outside in this damned heat.”) and Kara graciously accepted (“Heat doesn’t bother me, but I won’t turn down your offer.”).

The two women had been chatting for several minutes when there was a knock on the front door. Lena was confused, since the only person who ever visited her was sitting right next to her.

Upon answering the door, Lena found three unfamiliar and rather rough looking men. The one in front tipped his hat, and asked if she was Miss Lena Luthor. When she confirmed her identity, he ask if him and his partners could step in and have a chat with her.

To an outsider, the following minutes would look something like this: Lena pauses, glancing back inside for a few moments before allowing the gentlemen into the home. The curtains in the window are drawn by one of the men, completely closing off any visuals of the conversation. Their horses are tied up to the porch rails, grazing at some of the grass, tails flicking in the mid-afternoon sun. A few minutes pass before a yelling voice is heard, followed by gunshots. More yelling. The sound of a fight. Gunshot. Another. One of the men is thrown through the front window, glass scattered across the porch as he slides to a stop, not moving. Another gunshot. Through the window, Kara can been seen holding one of the men in a choke hold, backing up as another stood before her, revolver out. Suddenly the man with the gun collapses to the ground, Lena appearing behind him with a now broken vase. Throwing the man in her arms back against the wall, the man only to the slump to the ground, Kara runs up to Lena, checking her over. They argue, Lena pulling Kara towards the door but Kara fighting back. Eventually, a look of realization crosses Kara’s face, and then the vanish from the window. A few more minutes and Lena’s front door is thrown open, the two of them sprinting out and off the porch, grabbing two of the men’s horses and taking off out of town, flying by a confused and concerned Eliza Danvers.

-

When Alex arrived to Lena’s house, she was furious. She knew she should have stuck to her gut about Lena. What normal eighteen year old girl just decides to travel to the other side of the country where making a living is not guaranteed? Plus, she never seemed to work, only study minerals and plants. And it didn’t seem like she was sending her research anywhere at all.

The scene told a story.

An unfamiliar horse was tied up to the porch railing with evidence of two others having been there. One man was dead on the porch, blood on his head from where it had smacked against the railing, Alex would guess. The bullet hole she found in his torso didn’t seem to be the killing blow, but Alex wouldn’t completely bet against it either. Glass scattered around the body told her he had been thrown through the window. Sizing him up, she knew that it would have been Kara.

Alex and Sheriff Jones made their way into the house, Eliza having been told to wait outside. One man was against the wall by the window, blood trickling out from a bullet wound in his stomach, holster at his side empty. Another lay crumpled on the ground, a revolver a few inches from his hand. Blood coated his head where - from the ceramic shards and broken vase lip - Sheriff Jones made the guess that he’d been smacked over the head with a vase, as well as the bullet wound on his rib cage.

“What do you think happened to Kara and Lena?” Alex asked, looking at the water glasses broken on the ground next to the upturned coffee table and the fresh vegetables wilting in the heat sitting in the kitchen.

Sheriff Jones shifted his hat, eyes passing over the scene as a whole, “Ran off. Knew they’d be in trouble if they stayed. Knew they’d be in trouble if they left. Once the fight instinct left, the flight instinct took over.”

Alex kicked at the ground, muttering under her breath, “Goddamn I’m gonna kick her ass when I get a hold of her.”

-

At first, Kara had been furious. She had insisted that they stay so they could explain themselves, but Lena had convinced her that they needed to leave. She had cited something about her family, that they’d just send more if they sat in the same spot. Even if she didn’t know for sure it was them who sent the men, Lena was good at taking educated guesses.

“What kind of family sends kidnappers to retrieve their daughter?” Kara had asked incredulously.

“The same kind who praise your psychotic brother even after he was arrested and executed for murdering almost an entire town.” Lena sounded bitter, a dark look crossing her face. The topic was dropped.

The two woman traveled for days, stopping to sleep in an inn when they could. At one point while travelling out in the desert, Lena’s horse walked into a ditch and snapped one of its legs. Piling all their stuff onto the other horse, Kara took the revolver Lena had grabbed from one of the men and killed the horse, not wanting to leave it there and let it die over several days.

They bought new clothes in the first town they could, Lena switching out her dress for more practical pants, shirt, and jacket. Kara bought similar, abandoning her overalls and hemp shirt for something that would provide her a bit more warmth at night.

Whenever the women could find an inn, they’d stay for a couple days, until they noticed people’s looks lingering on them for longer than normal. Lena had reassured Kara that she was just paranoid, but when they overheard two women in the general store talking about them, saying that they matched the description of the outlaws from a town east of there, Lena’s feelings changed.

They left town that night.

The stress of the situation put the two women on edge around each other. Kara was trying to convince Lena that they should turn themselves in, but Lena knew that nothing good would come from it. Her mother had her claws in the police, and if she was involved, if they were caught Lena was sure they’d be sent back East. Delivered to Lillian all tied up in a bow.

It all came to a head one night during an argument, both of them trying to keep their voices down and only part way accomplishing their goal. Their supplies were running low and so was their money. Lena had suggested robbing a store or a bank, and Kara was vehemently against it.

“I’m not robbing a bank Lena!” Kara’s arms were crossed against her chest, jaw set in defiance.

“Well,” Lena started, hands on her hips as she walked into Kara’s space, challenging her despite the height difference, “I’m not forcing you to. I didn’t  _ force _ you to come with me. I’m not  _ forcing _ you to stay. You wanna turn yourself in?  _ Fine _ ,” she spat out, “There’s the door. You can ride back to Midvale. Maybe your sister will hear you out.”

She spun on the heel of her boot and began to walk away, but Kara caught her 

“I am  _ not _ leaving you to face this alone.”

“Why not?!” Lena yells, “Why did you come along with me in the first place? You had a loving family, a good job, friends. Why did you leave all of that behind to run away with me?”

“Because I - !” Whatever Kara was about to say get caught in her throat as she snaps her jaw shut. Her body goes completely ridgid, a look on her face that Lena can’t quite make out. She’s confused, Kara had always been so easy for her to read.

“Because you what?” Lena raises an eyebrow, challenging Kara, and mimics her crossed arms.

Her body goes loose, eyes falling to the floor and Kara’s voice is quiet when she speaks, “Because I love you.”

Kara is sure that Lena is about to kick her out, leave her to the lawmen. She’s completely surprised when Lena charges into her space, takes Kara’s face in her hands, and fiercely kisses her.

The pause from Kara lasts long enough that Lena pulls away, now being the unsure one. The moment her hands fall from Kara’s face, Lena already thinking about what direction out of town she’s going to head, but Kara takes her hands and pulls Lena in, kissing her back. When they part again it’s to take a breath and they both laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time,” Kara says, barely above a whisper as she rests her forehead against Lena’s. Lena manages to eek out a  _ “Me too” _ before she kisses Kara again.

Eventually, the kisses lead to hands wandering, clothes abandoned on the floor, and the two women crawling into one of the twin beds together. Years of longing and pining had to be made up.

-

They didn’t have time in the morning to lounge around, despite their desire to. They had to ride fast and get out of town before someone caught on.

The two gained even more attention when they rob a bank a few days later.

As fast as they rode, they couldn’t outrun the news of two female outlaws wanted for killing three lawmen. They’d already been on the run for almost two months and they knew they only had so much time.

Turns out they had less than they thought.

They’d arrived to town the day before and were planning on leaving that night. They sat in the back corner of the saloon, eating and drinking with their hats pulled low over their faces and bandannas covering their necks. They looked a bit shady, but generally nondescript.

The sound of the doors being thrown open caught both of their attention. Several men walk in, all of them scanning the empty establishment. Eventually, their eyes fall onto the two women and the cold dread and fear that’s been lingering in the back of their minds for the past months comes forward in full force. The men approach, the lead one wearing a smug smile. All of them have their hands on their butts of their pistols, but not drawing them to Lena’s surprise.

The lead man tells them they can make this easy and come with them quietly, “Or we can make a scene out of this if you’d so like.”

The bullet Kara puts in his leg answers his question.

A fight breaks out, Kara upending the table as bullets fly from both sides. It doesn’t last long, Lena and Kara cornered, overpowered, and outnumbered. Kara took a bullet to the shoulder, Lena catching one in her arm. They managed to take out a few of the men before they’re knocked out.

When they wake up, their wounds are bandaged and they’re handcuffed in what Lena deduces is a jail cell and what Kara  _ knows _ is one. If she wishes hard enough, she can imagine Alex walking through the door and letting them, smacking Kara over the head for all the trouble she’s caused. They whisper to each other, despite being alone, checking in on how the other is.

Their loneliness is ended when a woman enters the room. Her head is held high, brown hair hair pulled back into a tight bun, wearing a dress that reminds Kara of the first one she saw Lena wearing.

From the way Lena goes rigid, jaw clenching and eyes going hard, Kara gets the feeling her connection isn’t too far off base. When the lady refers to Lena as her daughter, well, Kara doesn’t need it any more clear than that.

Lena’s mother ignores Kara entirely, going on and on to Lena about how much work she’s put in to find Lena and catch her.

“Honestly, Lena, You could have just come with the men the first time. No need for all of this running around, wasting life.”

Lena scoffed, her voice the same angry and bitter tone it gets whenever she talks about her family, “As if you’ve ever cared about wasted life. Besides, you could have at least informed me ahead of time that you were sending men. They refused to say who had sent them. Come on, Mother, you taught me better than that.”

She just smiles and calls the sheriff in. Kara finally gets a name as the sheriff says, “Yes, Lillian?” She asks for Lena to be released and, despite the unsure look on his face, the sheriff eventually concedes. He unlocks the cell door, leading Lena out, and proceeds to uncuff her, locking Kara back in the cell. Lillian nods, taking the keys before dismissing him. Lena motions for Kara to get released, but Lillian just shakes her head, a sly smile on her face.

“Darling, I’m not going to release your kidnapper.”

Lena gets angry, beginning to argue that she went willingly, even saying that she convinced Kara to go on the run with her. Her fight is futile as she realizes that Lillian knows Kara didn’t kidnap her. The way Lillian’s eyes flash between the two women worries Kara, Lena watching as the pieces slide into place in Lillian’s mind.

“ _ Oh, Lena. _ You didn’t go and fall in love, did you?” The silence she receives is answer enough, “It’s alright, darling, I can take care of that.”

Lillian draws a previously unnoticed pistol, pointing it at Kara through the bars.

Kara didn’t think it would end like this, stuck in a jail cell after running from the law for months with her best-friend-turned-lover. Never in her wildest dreams had she considered this.

“Clark may be untouchable, but his cousin is nothing more than a wanna-be criminal.”

Kara watches in slow motion as Lillian pulls the trigger moments after Lena tackles her. The bullet ricochets off the wall a few feet from Kara, but she doesn’t think she would have noticed even if it went straight through her heart. Lena and Lillian were wrestling on the ground, Lillian almost gaining the upper hand as she grabbed at Lena’s fresh bullet wound. Lena was able to keep it though when she headbutts her mother.

They continue to wrestle for the gun when it goes off.

Sure her heart has stopped, Kara catches her breath. She watches as everything seems frozen. Eventually, Lillian’s body falls slack, Lena stumbling off of her, the gun clattering to the floor in a pool of blood.

After a few stunned moments, Lena scrambles and grabs the keys, sitting on the floor a few feet away. She fumbles open the door, wrenching it open as she limps over to Kara. The blonde begins to ask Lena if she’s okay and Lena just silences her with a fierce kiss.

“Shut up and run away with me.”

-

When the sheriff returns from his “lunch break”, he find an empty jail cell and a dead Lillian Luthor.

-

A few days later, two bodies are found in the charred remains of a roadside camp. The bodies are female, but indistinguishable beyond that. The lawmen who look through the remains of the camp find a set of keys, a few changes of clothes, bloodied bandages, a pair of hats and bandannas, and revolver with “LUTHOR” engraved in the handle.

The newspapers the next day speak of the deaths of outlaws Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor, retelling their tales of crime from the first dead lawmen to the death of Lillian Luthor.

-

Eliza kept every newspaper that mentioned Kara’s name, no matter how bad the news was. Alex consoled her at the news of their deaths, kicking herself over the whole situation. If she had tracked them down, maybe she would have been able to change it, bring Kara back home.

Sheriff Jones gives Alex the next few days off and Eliza doesn’t help any patients. According to the newspapers, there wasn’t much left of a body to bury, not that they’d turn it over to them if they asked. Instead, Alex takes a piece of stone with Kara’s name carved in and places it next to the one carved with “JEREMIAH DANVERS”. Eliza cries as Alex plants flowers over where Kara’s body should be buried. Alex reminds herself that Kara shouldn’t even be dead.

That night, as the two women are silently eating dinner, there’s a knock at the door. Alex is set to ignore whoever it is, but after several more insistent knocks, she eventually storms over, ready to rip the head off of whoever is there.

Her voice fails her as she flings the door open. Past the choppy haircut and ratty clothes, Alex recognizes the face of her sister.

She’s frozen for a few moments, Kara squeaking out an “Alex?” before she’s pulled into a tight hug. Suddenly, she’s being shoved back, taken completely by surprise so she falls flat on her ass in the dust.

“What the hell were you thinking!” Alex yells, “What the absolute  _ HELL  _ were you thinking?”

Alex doesn’t notice Lena until she steps forward to help Kara off the ground. Alex brushes past Kara once she back up, this time shoving Lena. Now she’s yelling at her, telling her to leave Kara the fuck alone, saying how Lena’s already dragged Kara through hell and how Alex ought to arrest her here and now.

Her rant is cut short by a cry from the doorway.

Eliza stumbles forward, pulling Kara into a hug, burying her neck into Kara’s shoulder. Grumbling, Alex ushers everyone inside, citing that “if we stay out here too long, someone is going to notice.”

Eliza fixes Kara and Lena some bowls of soup, both of them looking thin and pale, Alex glaring at the two from the otherside of the table. She’s completely and utterly ecstatic that Kara is still alive, but all the anger that she’s had over the past several months is boiling back up to the surface.

Once the bowls of soup have been all but licked clean, the two women finally start talking. They go over the full story, Lena starting with the men who showed up to take Lena back home. She had run away not long after her brother had be caught and executed (“And apparently done so by Kara’s cousin.”). They go back and forth, telling different portions, both of them leaving out the night in the hotel when they professed their love for each other.

“We didn’t kill those women,” Kara explained, “They were already dead when we found them. All we did was leave some of our stuff behind and set it ablaze, running off on foot into the night. We were hoping that they’d be found and the lawmen would assume it was us, especially when no news comes around about us causing trouble. It was the easiest way out: fake our deaths.”

“I wanted to leave it at that,” Lena added, “If everyone thinks we’re dead, then no one can possibly leak our new identities. Kara, however,” she looked over at her, mock annoyance in her eyes but it was thinly veiling the love she felt, “Needed to come back and let you two know that she was alright.”

Alex didn’t know what to do. From the sounds of it, they’d be on their way shortly. They just got Kara back, she couldn’t possibly leave them again. But Alex also understood the logic. If two women who fit a similar description to Kara and Lena showed up in their hometown and started living life as they had before, well, suspicious would be putting it mildly.

Eliza seemed to pick up on the same thing, but still offered the house as a place to stay for a few more days. Lena looked reluctant, but relented at the look on Kara’s face. As everyone went to bed that night, Eliza pulled Kara into a tight hug for nearly a full minute. When she pulled away, both of them were glassy eyed as Kara reassured her that she’d still be there in the morning. Alex parts with a hug with Kara and a not-as-cold glance over at Lena, even giving her a slight nod.

The following days are filled with Lena and Kara trying to plan their next steps interspersed with meals and wandering around the farm. On their first day there, Lena finds Kara standing at her grave. Lena feels that it must be weird, looking at your name carved into stone with a date of death, knowing it’s for you but there’s nothing buried beneath the dirt. Lena idly wonders if anyone back East did this for her before shaking the thought from her head, knowing there’d be nothing.

Quietly, Lena walks up to Kara, wrapping her arms around her waist and resting her chin on Kara’s shoulder. They stand there in silence, Kara moving her hands to cover Lena’s. When Kara does speak, she talks about Jeremiah. She tells Lena how he, and Eliza, took Kara in no questions asked. He showed her how to milk a cow, how to sow seeds and till a field. He taught her all of the foundation knowledge she knew about farming.

“When he died, Eliza was so distraught. Alex locked herself in her room for days, not wanting to interact with anyone,” Kara runs her thumb over Lena’s knuckle absentmindedly, “I was worried they’d do the same thing. I think if I hadn’t been here, they would’ve just wasted away.”

“They’re at a different place in their life now, love,” Lena responds, her lips ghosting against Kara’s neck, causing a slight shiver to go down her spine, “Alex has a job and isn’t a moody teenager anymore and Eliza has only gotten stronger as the years have gone on.”

As the two continue to talk, Alex watches them from the back porch. She’d always wondered if Kara was interested in Lena, beyond the platonic friendship they’d always had. As she watched them, she was sure that Kara love Lena and that Lena loved her back. They had left out part of the story, but Alex was sure they wanted to keep that to themselves.

-

When the morning came for Lena and Kara to depart, the remaining Danvers women were barely holding it together. Eliza handed them bags filled with supplies, wishing them safe travels and telling them they always have a place to stay here. Alex pulled Kara into a hug after her mother did, whispering in Kara’s ear that she better not do anything stupid like that again. Kara just laughed weakly in response, pulling back and telling her sister to stay safe and keep her head on her shoulders.

Lena wasn’t very surprised when Eliza hugged her. They had had a heart to heart early yesterday morning, Lena opening up about how her mother had always treated her and about how she didn’t feel any remorse for shooting her.

She was, however, surprised when Alex pulled her into a bone crushing hug. Alex whispered into her ear that she better take care of Kara, and that if Alex catches any wind of trouble, she will hunt her down and take care of it. As startled as Lena was, she understood. Alex seems to have caught onto at least part of her relationship with Kara, but since Alex wasn’t arresting her or putting her body in a ditch, well, Lena guessed Alex was at least somewhat okay with it.

After a few more hugs and more than a few tears, Kara and Lena climb onto the two horse Alex procured for them, waving goodbye as they ride off in the rising sun where a new future awaits.

-

Nobody expected anything exciting to happen in the small town of Midvale. The most exciting claim to fame the townsfolk had was that the great outlaws Lena Luthor and Kara Danvers made their first hit on the town. People who were fascinated by the whole stopped by, generating revenue for the whole town.

Nobody ever would have suspected a place so quiet and normal as Midvale to have been the starting point of a story so wild and adventurous.

-

A few months later, a letter arrives at the Danvers’ house. Alex smiles as she reads it Eliza:

_ If you’re ever out East, drop on by. _

_ Sent with love, _

_ Linda Lee and Tess Mercer _

**Author's Note:**

> thenameisz.tumblr.com


End file.
